There There Book Review

I’ve read plenty of books by indigenous authors, but none of them dealt with the lives of urban Native Americans. Plus, I will be honest and say that I didn’t really know that group even existed. This gap was the reason why Tommy Orange – an enrolled member of the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes of Oklahoma – wanted to write about them in the first place. And he did with his debut novel 2018’s There There. Although not everything works in the book, I admire its ambitions.

There There follows twelve people from various Native communities as they travel to the Big Oakland Powwow in Oakland, California. They’re all connected in ways they may not yet realize. These voices tell the story of the urban Native American, grappling with its complex and painful history, beauty, spirituality, communion, sacrifice, and heroism.

The title refers not to the phrase that people say to quell someone’s sadness and suffering, but to a quote from Gertrude Stein. Specifically, as someone who had lived in Oakland, she said this: 

“…what was the use of my having come from Oakland it was not natural to have come from there yes write about it if I like or any- thing if I like but not there, there is no there there” (Everybody’s Autobiography, p. 298).

Stein was lamenting how she couldn’t find her childhood home when she was on a lecture tour in 1935 and how the land around it was completely changed. In the context of the book There There, the quote is used to reflect a hard truth of how indigenous people were so displaced that they couldn’t recognize their ancestral lands anymore. It’s even referred to by a character named Dene Oxendene, a filmmaker who receives a grant and and describes himself as “ambiguously nonwhite” (p. 28, p. 38-39).

A common word to describe There There is ambitious, and I completely agree. Orange sets the standards high by having a prologue that details how white people conquered the indigenous as well as the origins of the urban Native American. This happens right before the first section entitled “Remain.” Then, in the Interlude in the second part labeled “Reclaim,” he describes the meaning of powwows, how last names were bestowed onto the indigenous, and how they continue the fight to be seen in the present tense. There’s also a third and final section called “Return.” These provide a proper context of the inner conflicts each of the twelve characters go through, which unifies them as the story unfolds. The “Interlude” section comes a bit out of nowhere, but it felt necessary as everyone gears up to go to the Big Oakland Powwow at that point of the story.

On the other hand, not all of Orange’s ambitious ideas work as effectively as they should. Each chapter is devoted to one character and how they deal with being an urban Native American. All of them have their reasons for going to the powwow. However, it’s a little hard to connect to them since once I’m into one person, the book switches to another perspective. At various times, I had to go back to the beginning to see which character was who. It didn’t help that the plot is told through a third point of view. The characters I gravitated to the most were Edwin Black and Jacquie Red Feather. Edwin is an overweight half-indigenous and half-white man who still lives with his mom and has issues with her boyfriend. He wants to begin his life again by working and finding his biological Native father. Jacquie is a Cherokee woman who copes with her trauma of being raped while drunk as a teenager at Alcatraz in 1970. And yet, she longs to see her grandchildren again, who are currently staying with her half-sister Opal.

At the same time, I enjoyed how the novel reveals how each of the characters are related. It does this gradually, and it’s very effective. Even though I was reading this while in bed, it made me actively try to piece together how each is connected. 

Another reason why I had a somewhat difficult time reading it was the pacing. It was very slow for the first half because the book needed to explain each of the character’s situations. This was why each chapter was about 15-20 pages. I understand that this was done to represent their reflections on their individual and group past traumas, which is highly important to the story being told, yet it strongly affected the pacing. Fortunately, once those exposition dumps were out of the way, the pacing picked up. This is exemplified by the shorter chapters. Some of them weren’t even a page long. This approach makes sense, for something drastic happens at the powwow, which frazzles many characters’ minds.

Overall, There There by Tommy Orange is an undoubtedly ambitious debut novel that aims to tell the multiple stories of various urban Native Americans. Even though not all of the book’s ideas work, I admire Orange’s commitment to them as each character has their own yarn to weave. I would recommend this book to those who want to read more books by indigenous authors as well as about the reckoning of Native American identity. I hope there are more tales about native people living in urban areas because this needs to be explored more. Thank you Tommy for helping to fill in this gap! I also look forward to reading his next book Wandering Stars, which is going to be published next year.

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The Indispensable Element: Six Keys to Lead Yourself to Success in Your Life, Work, and Relationships Book Review

Full disclosure: I was given an ARC of this book from Stress Free Book Marketing in exchange for an honest review.

It’s been awhile since I reviewed a self-help book. Yes, I listed Buy My Book, Not Because You Should, But I’d Like Some Money by John Marszalkowski as one, but it’s not a traditional title in that genre. To make it a true self-help book, one has to do two things. 1. The author has to talk about how they overcame their struggles and 2. They have to describe how one can do the same. Today’s title The Indispensable Element: Six Keys to Lead Yourself to Success in Your Life, Work, and Relationships by Micah E. Huggins, Esq. does those things in an active and engaging manner even if the religious tone can turn off some people.

The Indispensable Element: Six Keys to Lead Yourself to Success in Your Life, Work, and Relationships lays out the framework to become a better version of one’s self. Attorney, pastor, and author Micah E. Huggins teaches one to identify the things that are holding one back in life as well as how to step up and lead in relationships, work, and one’s personal life. If one is looking to become the leader God created them to be, great leadership starts with guiding one’s self. Specifically, one will learn how to do the following:

  • Naturally attract followers and supporters.
  • Strengthen your personal and professional relationships.
  • Position yourself for new and better career opportunities.
  • Break unproductive habits and develop habits that serve you.
  • Become confident enough to pursue your biggest dreams.

To sum up, the book believes that the indispensable element to become successful in life is the ability to lead. After all, dreams don’t always come true just by wishing for them. Huggins argues that one has to actively pursue them in order for them to become reality. This involves creating the plan and goals along the way as well as getting to know people with similar mindsets.

However, Huggins is very clear about what leadership actually is. He defines leadership as “the use of your gifts and talents to create positive influence and increase the value other people contribute to society and humanity for the greater good, while also fulfilling your calling and purpose” (p.9).

In other words, true leadership is all about helping others to develop their skills and taking into consideration how one’s actions can affect others. On the contrary, there’s an influencer. In Huggins’s mind, this person can “convince other people to change their beliefs and behaviors…based solely on what’s best for you [the influencer]” (p.12).

A leader can be an influencer, but an influencer can’t be a leader because they are mainly making decisions based on self-interest for good or worse. 

As one can tell from the quotes from the book, Huggins uses jargon that anybody can understand. In fact, this is not the only way he makes it highly accessible. Each of the six keys – gifts, vision, integrity, people, discernment, and faith – gets their own chapter, which are no more than 15 pages. They start off with a story drawn from the author’s own life to make his point about each of the essential aspects of becoming a leader and end with “Indispensable Action Steps.” These are a set of exercises that involve answering questions related to each of the six elements. Huggins actively encourages readers to answer them in a notebook or journal using the Assess-Decide-Act method. This is how invested he is in ensuring that people develop their ability to lead while reading this book.

On top of that, the author makes some excellent points. In the Vision chapter, he recounts how he had to take the bar exam not once, not twice, but four times in order to pass despite the many hours he spent studying and the money he paid to take it. His goal was to become an attorney, and to make that happen, he had to create a plan or a vision. After all, he states, “A leader cannot lead without a vision” (p.44).

In another example, in the “Discernment” chapter, Huggins asserts, “True discernment requires [one] to assess [the] choices based on what’s right for everyone involved and the season [one is] in at that time” (p.88). 

He illustrates this point by recalling a time, when he – as a public defender – was offered the opportunity to buy his boss’s law firm as a franchise. Instead of thinking it over and consulting with his loving and trusting wife Lauren, he took the deal, believing it would make him rich. However, he had to pay a franchise fee and a percentage of gross, not net, sales to his boss. This resulted in the author struggling to stay afloat, and it didn’t help that the staff was still loyal to his former employer. He eventually was able to get out, but had he considered more of that deal, he probably wouldn’t have taken it in the first place.

Huggins makes The Indispensable Element a very effective self-help book, but there’s one aspect that may turn off some readers. You see, he is a pastor as well as a lawyer. He doesn’t shove his religious views down people’s throats, yet his beliefs are still on display because they are part of his life. While I enjoyed his pastor-related stories, I wasn’t exactly thrilled with the passages, which he discussed about putting one’s faith into God. Now, this is a me problem since I’m agnostic, but I know that other people might have a stronger reaction with so much religious talk. Surprisingly, this is my second Christian self-help book that I’ve reviewed on this website (the first one was The Biggest Lie in the History of Christianity by Matthew Kelly). This is the better of the two because it doesn’t have any inflammatory language, and Huggins spends plenty of time examining his own personal relationship with God, which hasn’t always been perfect.

With that being said, I feel that people of any faith can read this. A lot of values that Christianity espouses can be found in other religions. So if people are able to switch certain words to fit with their beliefs, they would still be able to enjoy it the same as a Christian.

Overall, The Indispensable Element: Six Keys to Lead Yourself to Success in Your Life, Work, and Relationships by Micah E. Huggins, Esq. is a great traditional self-help book for Christians and other religious people. The author is able to communicate his ideas and thoughts in an accessible manner, and he’s actively encouraging his readers to develop their abilities to lead. All of it feels genuine. Even the cover, which features Huggins sitting on a stool, communicates that this man has faith in you to become a great leader. On the other hand, readers who aren’t religious may have a bit of a hard time getting into it due to the devout-like content, yet one could switch some words, and the point would still come across well. The book is out now, so go get it! It’s one of the better Christian self-help books that I’ve read.

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Last Light: A Collection of Short Stories Book Review

Disclosure: I was given an electronic copy of the story by the author and Henry Roi in exchange for an honest review. 

With Halloween coming up, I figured it was time to read something on the spookier side. Recently, I came across the book Last Light: A Collection of Short Stories by Chris Coppel. Normally, I don’t actively seek out horror stories, but this collection gripped me with its eerie and paranoid tales.

I would usually provide my own summary here, but the actual one does a better job.

“What really happens at last light? 

Last Light will give you just enough illumination to see into the wonders and horrors that dwell deep within the darkest shadows. These tales will both entrance and terrify. Scared of the dark? Let Last Light guide you safely through these stories of the paranormal and terror that surrounds us all.”

There are nine stories in this collection, and most of them deal with the psychological side of horror. This specifically includes the paranormal and the paranoia. In case anybody is wondering about the amount of gore in them, there really isn’t any. The only thing that they have in common is how they depict the titular sight, usually as the last things the characters see. 

Each tale shows horror in similar and different ways. In Labour Shortage, a woman working for the British government drives out to a rural English town to see how the locals are growing their crops so quickly and consistently. Let’s just say it involves the supernatural. Lightning Strike deals with paranoia as a Silicon-Valley tycoon tries to protect himself and his new house from the elements after a fire consumes the old one. Lost Words is a retelling of the classic Faust tale, in which an author gives his soul to the devil in order to write one great novel. That one has a pretty clever ending. In Light Dusting, the main character’s brother gets executed for murdering his date. Years later, his sons find their dead uncle’s clothes and put them on a snowman during a rare snow day in Florida. This brings it to life. It’s like Frosty the Snowman if he was on a revenge spree even though I was confused as to why the dead brother’s clothes would bring a snowman to life.

There were two things that I found interesting with this collection. One was that every title started with the letter “L.” I found that it’s Coppel’s trademark because he’s got other books with the same letter from Lucy (his debut novel) to Lunacy (his second most recent one). Sesame Street would be very proud. 

The other was that the first and last stories contained hope. The former titled Living Water involves a rich old businessman wanting to go to a fountain of youth on tribal land in Utah despite the warnings of what happened to others when they did the same thing. The latter story titled Lasting Memories revolves around a man who was recently released from prison trying to rebuild his life when he meets an elderly lady in the same apartment building that he lives in. Coppel makes Living Water and Lasting Memories seem like they are going to be terrifying just by the way things are set up in both. Even the main character in the latter thinks that the old woman is going to seduce him like the one did to Jim Carrey in the film Yes Man. And yet, they are hopeful, and even in the case of the Lasting Memories, heartwarming. It’s clear to see the Stephen King influence on Coppel, yet the author still makes his stories his own.

My favorite stories from this collection are Lasting Memories, Last Touch, and Long Shadows. The former is about a 12-year-old boy who has the knowledge of when someone is going to die within 24 hours just by shaking their hand and feeling a shock. Complications arise when he realizes that every person who shook his hand receives that same shock. It’s one of the shortest tales in the collection, but it packs a punch. I seriously wanted this boy to figure out what was going on and solve it. Sadly, there is no hope in that one. The other story Long Shadows involves a successful horror writer who gets invited to an exclusive dinner in New Orleans. He is then told about the titular creatures who believe that the authors are writing about them and want them destroyed. These monsters are similar to the Weeping Angels in the modern Doctor Who in the eerie way Coppel writes about them. The main difference is how one should confront them. With the shadows, one has to not look directly at them, while with the Weeping Angels, one has to not blink. Unfortunately, the main character in Long Shadows gets too big for his britches and defies the rules. Afterwards, I yelled, “You should’ve listened to the guy!”

The one that I wasn’t crazy about was Lethal Assignment. That one told the tale of a teenaged boy who spends time playing an assassin-based video game and discovers similar murders occurring in real time around the world. The concept is very unique, for there are not a whole lot of science fiction-based horror stories nor ones that involve video games. I would love to see more of these. However, this one simply got a little too intricate to follow. I still enjoyed what I could of it.

All in all, Last Light: A Collection of Short Stories by Chris Coppel was an entertaining psychological horror collection. They mostly did a great job of entrancing and terrifying me. I also found it surprising that some of them contain hope in the face of abject terror. I would recommend this to readers who enjoy short stories, prefer ones with less gore, and love horror overall. The book is out tomorrow, Tuesday, September 26, so go get it soon! In the meantime, I’m going to read another one of Coppel’s works, Lunacy. No way it’ll be my last light with Coppel.

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The Flight of Celestial Race Horses Book Review

In all my years spent reading, I’ve read some books that were indeed bizarre. These include Vita Nostra by Marina and Sergei Dyachenko and Transcendence by Shay Savage. Today, I can now add another title to that group: The Flight of Celestial Horses by Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow, the former president and current Chairman of the People’s Council of Turkmenistan. It’s a cult of personality picture book wrapped up in a horse fetish.

Normally, I would describe the plot of The Flight of Celestial Horses right here, but there isn’t much to it. It’s a book celebrating the beauty and agility of the Akhal-Teke – the national horse – and praising what the government (when I mean government, I mean what Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow) is doing to preserve that specific breed for the culture.

Vita Nostra and Transcendence are weird because they were written in that way intentionally. The Flight of Celestial Horses was not. I say this because of the man who wrote it. Berdimuhamedow created this book to show the people how much of a good leader he was in 2011 by preserving the animal in question. Keep in mind that he has committed so many humanitarian crimes that it would fill up a football field and has desperately tried to prove to people how much of a strongman he is (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d0Pduhdgkjk as one example). And those aren’t the most unique aspects about this dictator. Berdimuhamedow is so obsessed with horses, specifically the Akhal-Teke one, that I swear to God he wants to have sex with them. On top of that, he has written other books about this kind of equine like Akhalteke – Our Pride and Glory.

But what if a reader has no idea of any of this context surrounding Berdimuhamedow? Well, they will figure out pretty quickly that he is a dictator who is obsessed with Akhal-Teke horses. For starters, there’s this quote:

“Riding on horse, driving plane steering wheel, sea liner, driving powerful KAMAZ, Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow not just demonstrates wonderful physical shape and high professional skills in every business, he fixes in people’s mind the image of modern jigit [strongman in the Turkmen language], who has to do a lot. He must be well-educated, physically strong and esthetically erudite. It is not just good desires” (p. 116).

What is worse is that the horses in the pictures taken look like they want to be anywhere else but near him. On top of that, many of the solo horse shots have a clear view of their penises. Ironically, much of the text discusses how one must keep that breed pure. I’m not making this up.

Propaganda is still propaganda, but I’ve noticed that people will tend to look the other way if it is presented in an effective manner. Think of Triumph of the Will or Top Gun, how they made their subjects look, and their impact on their audiences. There’s a reason why people still reference them in various works. I can’t say the same thing with The Flight of Celestial Race Horses because even if one is able to push aside Berdimuhamedow’s disturbing obsession with the Akhal-Tekes, the text and pictures are not well put together.

The book contains text in between the equine photographs. They do exactly what one expects a horse-engrossed leader would do: praise the Akhal-Tekes in all of their beauty and skills and celebrate its president in ways that are definitely not suspicious. I had to reread some of these passages because of how clunky they were when I read them out loud. Granted, this is probably because it was originally written in Turkmen, so the text didn’t quite translate as well as it should. With that being said, the people who put this book together could’ve at least had an outside person who could look it over before it was officially published in English. There are plenty of grammar and spelling errors. For example, I counted a handful of times, in which two words were stuck together like in this caption of a horse photo, “Look, Ahalteke horse, look, your star has risen, and we believe that it light your way and will neverdie out!” (p.126).

I understand that it has also been translated into Russian, but I don’t know if it contains the same problems listed here.

The photographs themselves are probably the most enjoyable part of the book. They are some nice ones of the horses and the sites in Turkmenistan if you politely ignore how bad the photoshop is. I have some skill in altering digital pictures, yet even I knew how poorly edited these were. Many of the horse models’ shadows looked off. There’s even one where I believe the people involved had to forcibly insert Berdimuhamedow while riding an Akhal-Teke horse at the 2010 Victory Day celebrations in Moscow. I know he was there at that event (go to the 32:45 mark of this video to see for your self), yet the placement of him on the horse looked so awkward. The equine pictures contain captions that detail the name of the horse model as well as their birth year and their lineage. Did I mention that the former president of Turkmenistan is obsessed with the Akhal-Teke horse?

All in all, The Flight of Celestial Horses by Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow is one that I wondered how it came to exist. It’s a clumsy propaganda book written by a dictator who wanted to show off how strong of a leader he was by preserving a horse breed that he clearly wanted to have sex with. Even if one politely ignores the authorial intent, there are plenty of grammar issues and bad photoshop that will turn off readers. The only people I would recommend this book to are the ones who are able to read this ironically and want to laugh at dictators. It’s enjoyable in those aspects. If not, then I would suggest this video instead.

Before I go, I want to let you all know that the latest episode of the Adapt Me Podcast is out now It involves how a special guest and I would try to adapt this very book, and you can listen to it here!

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The Giver of Stars Book Review

Over the years, I’ve come to accept that some books might resemble others in a variety of ways. They might cover the same topic and/or contain similar scenes. This is often a coincidence. What matters is how the titles stand out from each other. And there’s the saga of The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek by Kim Michele Richardson and today’s subject The Giver of Stars by Jojo Moyes. Released 5 months apart in 2019, the books contained so many similarities that Richardson even considered legal action against Moyes. After finally reading The Giver of Stars, all I can say is that it wasn’t all that interesting in the first half, yet it picked up in the second half.

The Giver of Stars is about an Englishwoman who becomes a Pack Horse Librarian in Depression-era Kentucky. Alice Wright marries the handsome American Bennett Van Cleve hoping to escape her restricting life. However, she soon realizes that life in Kentucky is equally limiting, especially living with her ruthless and overbearing father-in-law. Fortunately, when a call goes out for a team of women to ride the rough terrains to give books to various patrons as part of Eleanor Roosevelt’s new traveling library program, Alice gladly signs on. She meets a variety of characters like Margery, a smart-talking, self-sufficient woman who never asks for a man’s permission to do anything. They are soon joined by three other women, and they become known as the Packhorse Librarians of Kentucky. Together, they endure many obstacles, but what keeps them committed is the thought of bringing books to people who never had much, arming them with facts that will change their lives.

Before I get started with this review, I will state this: there’s a possibility that I might’ve liked The Giver of Stars more had I read that before The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek. 

It wasn’t all that unique during the first part of The Giver of Stars. Not only did it share the same topic as The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek, but it also shared similar characters and plot points. Both Cussie from The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek and Alice are outsiders in their communities. One of them has blue skin, and the other is English. They also seek relief in working for the Pack Horse Library Project. Furthermore, they experience a bad first marriage and attacks from hillmen as well as read to bed-ridden patrons and recommend books to more suspicious citizens. And yes, they find true love with another guy who is nice and respectful of women. Although these resemblances are minor, it’s understandable as to why Richardson considered suing Moyes.

Even with the similarities, there are still some cliched scenarios that play out in the first half of The Giver of Stars. When Izzy, a young woman with polio, comes to work as a librarian, she is initially resistant because of her disability. Luckily, Alice and Margery help her to overcome this by constructing a leg brace that Izzy wears while riding a horse for her work. Honestly, since Jojo Moyes is the same author whose most famous novel involves a rich guy wanting to end his life because of an accident that made him severely disabled, I’m not surprised that she has an impaired character whose main purpose is to overcome obstacles. In addition, the whole story is essentially a fish out of the water tale. Alice is uprooted from her home in England and moves to Kentucky to be the wife of the handsome and wealthy Bennett Van Cleve. The outsider mentality is most apparent when she starts riding as a Packhorse Librarian. The book describes the horror of the living conditions of the hillfolk like how they have to cover up the walls of their homes with newspapers to keep it well insulated during winter. In The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek, these aspects are seen as part of the reality of living in one of the poorest areas in Kentucky.

At the same time, the second half made me more invested in the book. The moment where it clicked was when Alice decided to give two dolls that once belonged to her dead mother-in-law to two girls with a widowed father. This later resulted in a confrontation between her and Mr. Van Cleve – her controlling father-in-law (who is a villain in every sense of the word). He physically assaulted her over the loss of said dolls, and she resides with Margery for the rest of the novel despite demands from him. In addition, the library gets in some hot water. One involves the circulation of a book called Married Love or Love in Marriage by Marie Carmichael Stopes, Sc.D., Ph.D. Once Mr. Van Cleve hears of it, he advocates for its ban. He claims it’s smut, for Bennett tells him that Alice tried to do things to him after she read it. Considering the relevance of book bans today, one might think that the novel is trying to impose a twenty-first century lens onto a twentieth century environment. However, book bans were just as much of a problem back then as they are now. The controversy around The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck when it was initially published in 1939 is a great example. Then, in the third act, Margery gets arrested over the possible murder of a hillman whose decomposed body held a copy of Little Women by Louisa May Alcott. Although it ends predictably, it was great seeing the women of the Pack Horse Library Project stand up for themselves. The second half overall made the book worth reading because I was invested in what Alice, Margery, and the other women were going to do.

Julia Whelan narrated the audiobook. She needs no introduction as she has recorded those for books like Educated and The Great Alone. She is an appropriate choice as she is good with the rougher-sounding and Southern characters. Alice is given a posh British accent, and Whelan voices her with misery, but determination. She provides Margery a no-nonsense vague Southern accent, which is great. The men have some degrees of gruff in their voices, and they sometimes can blur together. Even the way that Whelan plays Mr. Van Cleve doesn’t go far enough because she seems more focused on the dialect than the emotion. However, I liked how she portrayed Bennett vocally. He sounds like a refined, but timid Southern gentleman, which is appropriate for the character. It’s not Educated, but I like this performance more than I did with The Great Alone.

To summarize, even though The Giver of Stars by Jojo Moyes is predictable and banal in the first half, the second half more than makes up for it. There’s no denying the similarities between today’s novel and The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek by Kim Michele Richardson as well as how cliched it can get. Nevertheless, I wouldn’t dissuade someone from reading the former. It’s invested in its characters as well as what the Pack Horse Library Project means to them, and I’m always down with a book that advocates for libraries. I would also recommend it to those who have never heard of or know little about the Pack Horse Library Project, who like stories about women trapped in loveless marriages, and who love books by Jojo Moyes. There will always be novels that mostly unintentionally resemble others. What makes a tale worth reading is how it stands out from the pack.

Before I go, I want to let you all know that my latest episode of the Adapt Me Podcast is up now! It involves Goodreads reviewer and returning guest Cheyne Nomura and I figuring out how we would adapt The Giver of Stars as a movie. You can check it out here!

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Box of Birds: What New Zealand Taught Me about Life and the Practice of Medicine Book Review

Full disclosure: I was given a free PDF copy of this book by Stress Free Book Marketing in exchange for an honest review.

If I had a nickel for every time I review a memoir written by a doctor detailing their self-discovery journey by traveling to other countries and practicing more holistic-based medicine, I would have a dime, which is weird, but fascinating that it’s already happened twice. The first book that I encountered that fits that description was Open for Interpretation: A Doctor’s Journey into Astrology by Alicia Blando, M.D. The second and today’s subject is Box of Birds: What New Zealand Taught Me about Life and the Practice of Medicine by Stephen Stowers, M.D. The latter is a passionate and objective look at the author’s time working as a cardiologist in that country.

Box of Birds: What New Zealand Taught Me about Life and the Practice of Medicine spells out what the memoir is. Author and cardiologist Stephen Stowers wanted to become a doctor for many reasons. The main one was that when he was a child, he witnessed his grandfather, who worked as a medical professional, save a man’s life. He wanted to help patients in the best ways possible. Over time, however, he noticed how the American medical system became more about the profit than the patient. The author was so disillusioned by this that he accepted a job offer in New Zealand. This ultimately allowed him to practice medicine in a more ethical fashion and in ways that resulted in better patient outcomes despite the more limited resources. Doing more with less permitted him to become a better doctor.

Essentially, this memoir is how one doctor discovered a better medical system than the one in the United States, but he is balanced about it. When Stephen talks about the way New Zealand practices medicine as a whole, he acknowledges that even though the medical professions spend more time with their patients to find the best treatment for them, the system has limited resources. He also admits that while he had a great time in that country overall, it wasn’t idyllic by any means. For instance, he had a Nepali patient who needed catheterization because he was breathless, had an enlarged heart, had fluid in one of his lungs, and his blood pressure would lower any time he took a breath. Unfortunately, said patient had a complication since he “bled from the puncture wound, had to go to surgery, suffered a complication course, and ended up dying” (p.125). 

Stephen only mentions this part of the story in the Acknowledges section, but it would have been more effective if he included that in the main story to further balance out the perspective.

On the other hand, when he discusses the way the United States goes about that, he notes that while they contain the best resources in the whole medical field, they have become more profit-based because of how much the system encourages doctors to spend more money on their patients. While Alicia briefly touches on this in Open for Interpretation, Stephen gives hardcore specifics. For example, he mentions that the hospital administration that he was at in Florida right before he moved to New Zealand wanted him to generate more relative value units (RVUs). These are units of measurements to quantify every type of interaction the physician had with a customer, uh I mean, patient. He points out that currently, most doctors’ salaries are based on RVUs they generate each day. A physician inserting a stent into a patient with a heart condition will receive more RVUs than one encouraging the same person to exercise, to live a less stressful lifestyle, and to take cholesterol-lowering medication. In turn, the physician would get a higher reimbursement for said stent, and more money would go back to the hospital because of that procedure (p.5). It also doesn’t help that in the United States, doctors are more likely to get sued by patients in case anything goes wrong or is perceived that way. On top of that, when he returned to the United States permanently, physicians wanted to do an invasive procedure on his 95-year-old mother to prevent a blood clot traveling to her lung despite the evidence of how such a process could affect someone her age. This all blew my mind. 

While the critiques of the New Zealand and American medical systems make up a good chunk of the memoir, the bigger point was that the time in the former nation allowed him to become a better doctor. After he travels to New Zealand, each chapter illustrates how he was able to experience less burnout, more connection to his spiritual self, and more time to share his experiences with others as well as to conduct research that could help to save lives. Even in a chapter where he discusses the excursions that he and wife went on during his days off, he always incorporates a point about doctors and the medical field could do that too in the most natural way possible.

His passion for the practice of holistic medicine is clear in his writing, Stephen communicates his stories and ideas in a conversational manner. At the end of the book, he includes a list of Kiwi slang that he learned while he was working in the Southern Hemisphere. In case anyone is wondering, the title of the memoir Box of Birds means happy, joyful, or feeling good. In addition, since he is a physician, he includes a lot of medical terminology. While some of it flew over my head, he was able to explain them in a way that I didn’t need to look them up on the Internet. This is especially true when he was discussing the research he conducted in New Zealand. He wanted to measure the amount of calcium in a patient’s coronary arteries, which can determine the risk of developing a heart attack and the course of treatment. 

Overall, Box of Birds: What New Zealand Taught Me about Life and the Practice of Medicine by Stephen Stowers, M.D. is a passion advocate for the practice of more holistic medicine. While it’s clear what his opinions are on the American versus the New Zealand medical systems, he is pretty balanced. He also writes in a way that anybody can understand, even with the amount of terminology that he uses. I would recommend this memoir to anybody working and/or studying in the medical field. The book will be out this Friday, September 9, so go check it out! It’s a good argument for the need to put patients above profit.

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Oppenheimer Movie Review

July 21st, 2023 will no doubt go down as one of the most important dates in cinema history. Not only were two of the most highly anticipated movies of the year released, but also they were critical and commercial successes. One was Barbie, and the other was Oppenheimer. The latter directed by Christopher Nolan is an effectively abstract and introspective look at the man who invented the atomic bomb.

Oppenheimer follows the career of theoretical physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer (played by Cillian Murphy). It focuses on his studies, direction of the Manhattan Project, and fall from grace due to the 1954 security hearing.

Because I run a book review website first and foremost, I have to point out that Oppenheimer is based on the 2005 biography American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer by Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin. I haven’t read the book, but with the popularity of the film being as powerful as an atomic bomb right now, I will get my hands on it to see if it captures the spirit of the biography. This would be especially true if the movie gets nominated for and wins Best Adapted Screenplay at next year’s Oscars.

I have seen plenty of Christopher Nolan films over the years, both in the movie theater and at home. In fact, Oppenheimer was the fourth flick I’ve seen of his in the former. Seeing it on the big screen really enhanced the Nolan touch on the cinematography and the sound.

For those who don’t know, Nolan has red-green color blindness. As a result, he can’t see those particular colors. This explains why his films tend to be blue and yellow heavy. In Oppenheimer, those hues are prominent along with orange during the atomic bomb sequences as well as brown, tan, and white. On top of that, parts of the movie are shot in black and white to represent the stark reality of Oppenheimer’s situation when Lewis Strauss (played by Robert Downey Jr.) is in the Senate hearings for his confirmation as Secretary of Commerce in the Eisenhower administration, and he is asked about the former’s communist ties. The events that take place prior are in color to show how layered the famous physicist and the events leading up to the atomic bomb were. Nolan did this deliberately to demonstrate objective and subjective perspectives, and this is all done well. The switches between black-and-white and color also help to keep viewers interested in the three-hour movie.

Another Nolanism is the sound. Usually, that tends to be prominent in his flicks, especially to accentuate certain scenes. However, depending on the movie theater, that sound can be abrasive. I remember watching his last historical drama Dunkirk and getting very angry because the bomb sound effect was very loud and repetitive. Granted, they were necessary because it was about the famous British retreat during World War II, and ticking noise used indicated that something was going to happen. With Oppenheimer, the sound is better mixed, yet prominent when it needs to be. For example, during important scenes, the non-percussion score composed by Ludwig Göransson swells up, but the dialogue is not drowned out. Also, sound effects are more varied. Some include noises for uranium detection and the sound of silence followed by several powerful explosions when the Trinity Test takes place.

Nolan’s screenplay is just as abstract as the aspects previously discussed. The film has a non-linear structure with the framework being Strauss’s Senate confirmation hearings. While the jumps can be weird at times, this is well executed. When the aforementioned hearing asks Strauss about a specific thing, the movie would then show the kangaroo court inquiring about something similar to Oppenheimer, and then displaying the events and how they unfold through the latter’s eyes. The screenplay is also layered in how it portrays the titular character. While Oppenheimer is seen as a hero to many, his left-leaning views threatened to ruin his career during the height of the Red Scare in the 1950s. In addition, while he can be charming, he was a womanizer despite being married to his wife Kitty (played by Emily Blunt), and he tried to poison his physics teacher while at Cambridge. 

Finally, there’s a running theme about consequences. It demonstrates how various characters either don’t fully realize them, or they don’t want to think about them. This makes sense. After all, dropping the atomic bomb is part of one of the most famous philosophical questions ever. When the people involved in the Manhattan Project celebrate the atomic bombs dropping in Japan, Oppenheimer gives a speech about this achievement. During said speech, he envisions one woman experiencing the initial effects of the explosion with her skin getting peeled off. He clearly looks shaken up, but in the end, he decides to brush that off and fully embrace the celebration. This helps to explain why the film omits the Japanese perspective. Oppenheimer is not a bad person for not taking that into account. It’s that if he starts to think about that, it becomes too much for him. He even talks about having blood on his hands during a tense scene with President Harry Truman (played by Gary Oldman). At the same time, that doesn’t make it any better, and the movie is aware of that.

Lastly, I have to talk about the performances. Many act well in the flick, but viewers will ultimately remember two of them: Robert Downey Jr. and Cillian Murphy. Downey plays Lewis Strauss, who was the head of the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission that Oppenheimer was a part of. He plays the character with intelligence and spite. The latter comes out during the scenes between Strauss and Oppenheimer after it was revealed that the Soviet Union got their hands on the hydrogen bomb. Through Downey’s performance, Strauss is also petty, especially once it’s revealed how he was involved in the kangaroo court that questioned Oppenheimer when his security clearance got revoked. Downey is the perfect actor to play Strauss because he spent years playing Ironman – a superhero who can be just as selfish and vengeful as well.

And then, there’s Murphy who plays the title character. He brings charm and thoughtfulness to Oppenheimer that makes viewers want to root for him, while acknowledging that he was no angel. The camera loves to do close-ups on Murphy’s boney and pondering face. This is especially true with the final shot of the film. And it has every right to; the guy resembles the real-life Oppenheimer. Speaking of his face, Murphy has one that allows him to play characters of any age and still make them believable. In the flick, he plays Oppenheimer in his 20s to his 50s, and all of that was effectively accomplished with different hair styles and body languages. When the character is at Cambridge, he is agitated and impulsive through Murphy’s performance. As he ages, his body language becomes more confident and relaxed yet with some anxiety. I wouldn’t be shocked in the slightest if the actor gets nominated and wins for Best Actor at next year’s Oscars.

In summary, Oppenheimer is a thoughtful and abstract movie about the theoretical physicist who invented the atomic bomb. The choices that Nolan, Downey, and Murphy make certainly enhance the story of J. Robert Oppenheimer. I would recommend this to those who love historical dramas, especially the ones that are based on nonfiction books, learning about World War II, and stories involving the atomic bombs. Along with Barbie, this flick deserves all the praise and hype it got.

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Blue Beetle Movie Review

Superhero shows are everywhere. They are inescapable. There are always shows based on Batman, Spiderman, Avengers, Justice League, etc.,. Then, last week, another one arrived in the form of the Blue Beetle – a superhero that I’ve never heard of until I started seeing the previews for this year’s flick Blue Beetle directed by Angel Manuel Soto. Now that I’ve watched that film, I can say that I’m glad that I did because even though it doesn’t reinvent the wheel, it certainly stands out from other superhero movies with its emphasis on heritage and family.

Blue Beetle is about Jaime (pronounced Hi-may) Reyes (played by Xolo Maridueña) and how he becomes the titular superhero. An alien scarab chooses the recent college graduate to be its symbiotic host, providing him with a suit of armor that’s capable of extraordinary and unpredictable powers. This forever changes his destiny.

Like I said before, I never heard of Blue Beetle until this film came out this year. I did some research, and it turns out that Jaime is the third person to have done the suit since the character first appeared in the DC Universe in 1939. The other two are Dan Garrett and Ted Kord, whose suits actually appear in the flick while Jaime, Jenny (Ted’s daughter and played by Bruna Marquezine), and Uncle Rudy (played by George Lopez) explore Ted’s lab. This is a nice and clever way to acknowledge the Blue Beetles who came before the current one.

The flick itself is not particularly innovative, which is not necessarily a bad thing in this case. While watching it, I noticed that it took elements from other superheroes films from the last 5-10 years. There always has to be romance even if it’s not all that necessary. In this film, it’s between Jaime and Jenny. The latter’s aunt (played by Susan Sarandon) runs Kord Industries and is the main antagonist, but Jenny wants nothing to do with the company, especially ever since her father’s disappearance. I get her involvement since she is the reason why the scarab gets into Jaime’s hands, but I don’t know if the romance was all that necessary. They could’ve developed a friendship based on justice and family. The sibling relationship between Jamie and his younger sister Milagro (played by Belissa Escobedo) is very reminiscent of that between T’Challa and his sister Shuri in the first Black Panther movie, mainly how annoying, blunt, smart, and loving the women are. It was still entertaining to see the siblings interact, especially when they are on the rooftop. 

There are also tropes that are present in the film that audiences have definitely seen before. For example, there’s a scene between Jaime and his recently deceased father Alberto (played by Damián Alcázar), in which the latter convinces the former that it’s not his time while the superhero is on the brink of death. I’m sure there are many people who have watched similar scenes in other flicks like Black Panther. In another example, the grandma Nana (played by Adriana Barraza) is a sweet old lady, but with a colorful past. The latter comes out when the family comes to rescue Jaime from the villains. Again, people have seen this before, but I enjoyed how Adriana fully commits to the part, especially when she yells, “Down with the Imperialists!” in Spanish.

 Despite not being reinventive, Blue Beetle still has many things going for it: the Latine heritage and family. This film marks the first time that a Latino superhero has been depicted on screen, which Soto doesn’t take lightly. The Latine experience is depicted in multiple ways in the flick. This ranges from the poor, but colorful neighborhood, in which the Reyes reside in, to the acknowledgement of systematic racism that Jaime and Milagro endure even though he has a college degree. My favorite is the soundtrack, which features plenty of Latine-inspired songs including “Tú Serás Mi Baby” – Spanish version of “Be My Baby” – by Juvented Crasa, which plays during a party thrown by the evil corporation Kord Industries with Latine waiters.

The strongest element that the movie has going is the theme of family. Jamie’s means everything to him even if they drive him up the wall. Also, they may or may not inadvertently had a hand in the scarab choosing him. Besides that, what makes this work is the chemistry among the cast. They are insanely believable as a family because of how comfortable they are around each other, and the best scenes involve them in some form. In addition, there’s a villain named Carapax (played by Raoul Max Trujillo) who taunts Jaime by saying that family makes him weak. Later, Jaime discovers Carapax’s backstory, which involves his own kin and how he was abducted into war. This gives him understanding as well as the courage to say to the antagonist that family is what makes him strong and not to kill him. In addition, one of the first shots of the movie is of the necklace containing a photo that Carapax wears. It’s later revealed that the picture is of his own family.

Because this is a superhero film, I have to talk about the performances. Xolo Maridueña, who is best known for his television work in Parenthood and Cobra Kai, is fine as the titular character. He has some charm and works best with the actors who play his family as well as in scenes where Jaime is struggling with his powers. If Blue Beetle gets a sequel, I would like to see him grow into the suit, uh I mean character. The standout performer of the movie is George Lopez, who plays the anarchist eccentric Uncle Rudy aka the Mexican Doc Brown. He infuses Rudy with elements from his standup comedy and surprisingly with a lot of heart. Also, I dig his long beard; it really suits the character.

All in all, while Blue Beetle may not be the most original superhero flick, it stands out in all the right places. Since it’s the first movie with a Latino superhero, the film embraces its Latine heritage in every way. It’s also at its most powerful when family is involved. It uses a lot of tropes from other movies, yet it executes them in a delightful way. I would recommend this movie to those who love superheroes, DC Comics, and flicks with a Latine lead and themes about family. I went into watching this film knowing nothing about Blue Beetle himself, but that didn’t stop me from enjoying it.

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Barbie Movie Review

July 21st, 2023 will no doubt go down as one of the most important dates in cinema history. Not only were two of the most highly anticipated movies of the year released, but also they were critical and commercial successes. One was Oppenheimer, and the other was Barbie. The latter directed by Greta Gerwig is a campy and honest look at the iconic doll and her complicated legacy.

Barbie follows the titular character (played by Margot Robbie) and her kinda boyfriend Ken (played by Ryan Gosling) as they go on a journey of self-discovery after she has an existential crisis.  

One of the things that I’ve noticed and that not many people have talked about is how the film has the same vibe of a Golden Age movie musical. It’s campy in how colorful it is and fully committed to its premise, no matter how self-aware it is. The sets in Barbieland are designed like Barbie’s dream homes. Even the title character has a water slide. On top of that, they are actual physical sets and not computer generated. They look so fake in the best way possible. Even the waves at the beach are fake, which makes the scene in which Ken tries to surf funnier. This is only one way that the people who worked on this flick demonstrated their love and understanding of the concept.

This self awareness is also extended to the music and the performances. “Pink” by Lizzo starts off the movie as Barbie wakes up and goes about her morning in the most imaginary-like ways. Its lyrics describe how pink, perfect, and fabulous the titular doll is (yes, I am aware of the sexual harassment allegations that Lizzo is currently facing, but she is the perfect artist to say those things about Barbie), and it’s accompanied by shots of Barbie doing the things that the song lists. That and its pessimistic version “Pink (Bad Day)” almost have a literal video vibe. For those who don’t know, those were ones in which people would change the lyrics to various tunes in order to describe what’s going on in the music video. Along with the homage to “2001: A Space Odyssey,” this perfectly sets the campy tone of the movie.

Also, I loved how the movie uses the wonderful “Levitating” knockoff “Dance the Night” by Dua Lipa. It plays during the choreographed dance scene (yes, the flick acknowledges this) at Barbie’s Dream House. The song talks about dancing while looking gorgeous despite going through some possible struggles. This fits Barbie’s state of mind as Margot Robbie struts around like she owns the entire place, which makes the memed line, “Do you ever think about dying?” out of place. Afterwards, Barbie brushes off that statement even though it’s clear that she is disturbed by that through Robbie’s performance.

With all of the bright and silly songs that are wonderfully performed, there is one that will definitely punch people in the gut. That ditty is the ballad “What Was I Made For?” by Billie Eilish. It comes at the climax, in which Barbie and her creator have a conversation. The former wants to know what it means to be human, so the latter shows what it’s all about. That song soundtracks the sequence, and I’m not going to lie, but I got sort of emotional. In addition, it’s all the more impactful because “What Was I Made For?” sounds differently from the other tunes.

Many of the actors did a fantastic job because they completely understood and loved the concept that Gerwig and husband Noah Baumbach wrote. Even Helen Mirren is having fun narrating the story and providing cheeky commentary on the side. But of course, I have to single out some who were the best. One of them is Margot Robbie. Robbie embodies the Barbie that everybody is familiar with for good or for worse. She is funny, for she takes herself so seriously. An example of this is when Barbie and Ken arrive in Venice Beach, she gets hit on by a lot of dudes. Some male construction workers cat-call her, which results in her explaining that those are sexual innuendos and openly declaring that she doesn’t have a vagina. Even the low point that Barbie has once Ken took over Barbieland (and naming Kendom) is hilarious and sad at the same time as she falls down and rolls over like a plastic doll (yes, I am aware that Barbie is a plastic doll). 

The other person who did an excellent job is Ryan Gosling. His Ken is someone who at first defines himself through his relationship with Barbie. Then, when he and Barbie go into the real world, he discovers that men basically rule it. As a result, he tries to get a job by telling people that he is a man. Even though that doesn’t work, he brings patriarchy to Barbieland and turns it upside down. While Ken becomes an antagonist force, viewers completely understand his intentions through Gosling’s thoughtful performance and commitment to playing a character whose main thoughts are beach, Barbie, and horses. Speaking of devotion, I have to discuss the song he sings called “I’m Just Ken.” Gosling sells that tune about being not good enough hard. He does this not only emotionally, but also vocally. When I was watching that sequence, I wondered where Gosling was when he was in La La Land – an actual movie musical. It’s almost as if he received more training as a vocalist, became more confident in his singing, or both. Either way, it’s wonderful to hear him sing while dancing and “fighting” with the other Kens.

Finally, I have to discuss the crux of Barbie: its commentary of the doll’s complicated legacy. Throughout the film, the Barbies, especially the stereotypical one, are seen as either empowering or detrimental to a girl’s or woman’s self-esteem depending on who the person is. Sasha (played by Ariana Greenblatt)  – the tween – hates Barbie because how much the latter makes women feel bad about themselves. Yet, her mom Gloria (played by America Ferrera) plays with Barbie (and thus responsible for putting thoughts about death into the doll’s head) to remind herself of better days while working as a secretary for the male-run company Mattel. This adds plenty of layers to the overall legacy. On top of that, Barbie spends the beginning of the movie not fully aware of Ken’s needs. It’s only after Ken takes over Barbieland that she realizes that she didn’t value him in a way that she should have. Hence, the movie is really commenting on how men and women should work together to make a better place and how one shouldn’t have to be defined by another. After all, Barbie says, “It’s Barbie, AND it’s Ken.”

Overall, Barbie the movie is excellent in many ways. It’s fun and campy in a way that feels like one is playing with a Barbie while watching it. It also can be serious at times, which makes the film surprisingly impactful. Although I’m sure that everybody and their mom has seen it already, I would still recommend it to anybody to watch it, especially with their mother. This flick deserves all the praise and hype it got.

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149 Books* Ranked From Worst to Best

*I know that some are adaptations, but that’s besides the point.

I can’t believe that I’m now approaching my 150th review. Additionally, I’m going to be celebrating my 5th Anniversary of reviewing novels in October, and I’ve got a something special plan for that.

Just like before, I will rate each of the 149 books that I have reviewed on this site. These are based on the ratings that I gave them on Goodreads, Letterboxd, and IMDb, but some have changed since their initial postings.

Here is the chart that I used to rate^ them:

* = Bad

** = Meh

*** = Decent

**** = Good

***** = Great

^Note: The books within each rating are only in alphabetical order.

Now, let’s begin!

*

**

***

****

*****

And there you have it! Let me what you think via Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or email!

I plan on expanding my repertoire, for I have been writing reviews of movies with “original” screenplays. Two of them will show up this week, and they are of newly released films!

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